3 Painful Hand Conditions and How to Treat Them

When your hands hurt, it’s hard to accomplish anything. Your hands are essential to everyday tasks as well as for almost all types of jobs. 

If whatever you do every day requires making the same motions repeatedly over a number of years, it’s not surprising that you could develop an overuse injury or a condition caused by normal wear and tear. 

Our board-certified orthopedic surgeons and our team with Delta Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine treat many patients who are dealing with painful hand conditions. Three such common conditions are arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, and trigger finger.

Each of these hand complaints is characterized by inflammation, pain, stiffness, and lost range of motion and function. Following is a brief outline along with guidance on how we treat them. 

Arthritis in the fingers, thumb, and wrist 

Arthritis in the hand is a common condition, especially for senior adults. Both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis can cause painful swelling, stiffness, and unsightly knots near your finger joints. It can become difficult to straighten your fingers completely. 

Carpal tunnel syndrome 

Are you experiencing pain, tingling, and/or numbness in your thumb and/or some or all of your first three fingers? It may be difficult to grasp objects in your hand or hold onto them. The pain may even radiate up your forearm. 

You may have carpal tunnel syndrome. You’ve irritated your median nerve, which extends from your upper arm down to your forearm and through your wrist to your hand. 

Trigger finger 

Does one of your fingers or your thumb become stuck when you bend it, causing pain when you try to straighten it out? You likely have trigger finger, a form of tenosynovitis. 

That means the tendon or the sheath that covers it has become inflamed, which prevents the tendon from gliding through the sheath to allow normal movement. Your finger or thumb feels stiff and painful, especially when you try to move it. 

Treating hand arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, and trigger finger 

Our hands are susceptible to overuse injuries simply because we use them all the time. You’re moving the joints in your thumb and fingers constantly during the day, doing everything from brushing and flossing your teeth to eating meals. 

Add a sport, hobby, or work that uses your hands and fingers to perform repetitive movements, and it’s easy to see how painful hand conditions can develop. 

Treating arthritis, carpal tunnel, and trigger finger is similar in many respects.

Injections

If you’re in severe pain when we see you, we can administer a steroid injection to calm inflammation. Steroid injections can help for weeks or months, but they’re not bulletproof. 

Pain medication

We can prescribe pain medication, but we don’t want you to stay on pain medication for the long term; it can cause health complications such as organ damage.  

Splint or brace

Using a splint or brace for a painful thumb, hand, or wrist helps keep them in a neutral resting position. You can use the splint or brace at night as well as during the day. We let you know how long you should wear it.

Physical therapy 

Once the initial inflammation subsides, you may need guided exercises or physical therapy. We offer physical therapy on-site so you can bundle your physician’s and therapy appointments, saving you time and effort. 

Therapy helps you regain strength and range of motion in your hand so you can accomplish normal daily living tasks. 

Ergonomics and assistive devices 

If you have arthritis and find it hard to open jars, cans, doors or other things you need during the day, we recommend assistive devices to help you. 

For example, if you use a keyboard for work, a curved or split keyboard helps relieve pressure on your hand and wrist when you have carpal tunnel syndrome. Investing in large-grip tools is helpful if your job requires the use of tools.  

Lifestyle changes 

You may need to make some lifestyle changes to avoid future inflammatory attacks. Be sure to take frequent breaks if you continue to use repetitive hand motions for work. Perform frequent hand stretches during the day that you learn in physical therapy. 

Knowing that overuse is a trigger for inflammation, you can help prevent new symptoms. 

Surgery

In some cases, we may need to perform surgery to relieve your pain. For example, a simple operation releases a tendon so it moves through the carpal tunnel with ease. 

For severe arthritis, joint fusion, joint replacement, or tendon transfer may be appropriate. Your physician lets you know if surgery is going to help you. 

Call Delta Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine or book an appointment online today if you have a painful hand condition.